Vince ::

Had a PB and honey on whole grain 2 hrs before start. A bowl of oatmeal with some brown sugar and a doppio espresso 90 minutes to start. A few bites of coffee cake 30 minutes before start for a little sugar kick. Food intake was just about right for this short of a race.

Temp at start time was about 42-45 and stayed there through the race. I wore bibs, long sleeve base layer, jersey and fingerless gloves. This turned out to be a perfect combo for the conditions and race.

25 minutes to start a took a warmup up and down a little rolling hill in a low gear.

The Plan

I pre-drove the course the day before because I couldn't find any details on it online as far as elevation goes. The plan was to sit in the front 10-15 riders until mile 20 and then take an inventory of my legs and make a move before the finish climb.

What Actually Happened

The race started really slow which was a surprise to me considering it was a short Cat5 race. I was expecting it to be much quicker. This created my main problem. The road was only closed on the right side so we had a narrow strip to work with and moving up was pretty tricky. I decided to sit in around 20th position.

There were some little flicks here and there and some yoyo'ing of the field up and down the rollers but nothing that wasn't easy to grab onto. The slow pace really kept it crowded.

Time to Make a Move

A few guys tried to go off the front at around mile 18 and they were reeled in pretty quick. I took the opportunity that came from the recovery moment to get up to the front on the gutter side. This worked out well because the field was a little strung out from the last kick and I had room to work. I got up into 4th position and sat for maybe 30 seconds to see if anyone was going to make a move and to feel out where I was and if I had something to give. I knew I wanted to make a move before the finishing hill that was about a 1/4 mile long because that would be the point where everyone would switch on.

Just as I settled in another move came up out of the back left and I had no room on the right to move up and hold position and I found myself now sitting around 20th again on the gutter side. No more moves came and it was going to all come down to the finish climb and here I was buried 15-20 deep.

The climb came and I held and picked up a few. I was on a guy's wheel with about 200 meters to go and he made a sudden move right and I found myself catching my spokes on the QR of the dude who was all but stopped in the middle that he was trying to avoid (keep your head up Vince). I kept it upright and continued on...that cost me a couple places but I'm happy to not have gone down...thankfully we were going uphill. I finished right with the lead group of 20 guys. Now my wheel needs a couple new spokes and a truing.

All in all it was a clean race with everyone well behaved and safe. I did lock up my rear wheel a few times in the yoyo and I know I wasn't the only one as I smelled burnt rubber a lot.

Take Aways

My fitness is in a good place, I had a lot to give and left a lot out on the road. As we move into the spring I'll definitely be working on speed, strength and climbing. I was worried I might be under-gunned as far as my bike was concerned but the Felt F75 fit right in and was everything I needed and more.

In the future (especially Cat5) I need to make it a point to muscle my way up into the top 5 much earlier and possibly do some time in the wind to earn it.

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Renaissance man and world champion dad

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 17:18:42 -0800

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True.

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:23:06 -0800

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Soggy run

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 09:29:44 -0800

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Really digging the hydration mix from skratch labs

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 17:23:14 -0800

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Justin Burke at #justlove

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:39:02 -0800

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Winning

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 17:21:55 -0800

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Crimson and clover

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:20:23 -0800

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My son can do this to his headphones in about 38 seconds

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 17:07:44 -0800

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My Strengths Finder Results

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 06:39:00 -0800

Our team did a Strengths Finder assessment and I thought I would post it here so I could reference it later...and share it with you.

Ideation

Because of your strengths, you repeatedly let people benefit from your sound reasoning and logical assessment of opportunities, problems, regulations, policies, or proposed solutions. Chances are good that you welcome opportunities to exchange new theories, innovative thoughts, and intriguing concepts. Others’ original thinking probably stimulates your creativity. It’s very likely that you want people to see you as a winner, as “number one,” or as the very best in various activities. Being quite sensitive to what others think of you probably is a powerful motivating force that usually works to your advantage. Driven by your talents, you seek opportunities to tell others about facts you know or experiences you have had. You allow people to broaden your understanding with their original ideas. You have discovered that “the life of the mind” is a joint effort. You receive from other thinkers as many — and sometimes even more — insights as you provide them. Thinking with individuals or groups stimulates your creativity. You realize it makes each day worth living. By nature, you have a keen awareness of how others see you. From time to time, you are delighted to be in the company of certain admirers.

Activator

Because of your strengths, you empower people with your air of certitude — that is, confidence. Your very presence reassures them that they indeed are quite ready and capable of tackling assignments, spearheading projects, or playing key positions on a team. Chances are good that you urge people to attain their goals by pressing ahead without stopping. Some people feel threatened by your forceful messages. You probably use this technique with individuals who are slow to start or who are inclined to quit before the work is finished. Instinctively, you easily stir people’s enthusiasm with your cheerful exuberance for life. You have a gift for sharing your complete joy with others. Driven by your talents, you make good choices and draw sound conclusions. Coupling this with your strong sense of urgency, you can produce results quickly. Less decisive individuals are still trying to figure out what they should do after you have finished one task and moved on to the next one. By nature, you relish talking to others. Frequently you help people express their opinions, thoughts, or viewpoints with enthusiasm. Your words frequently energize individuals or groups.

Maximizer

It’s very likely that you may exude a natural confidence that allows you to remain calm and composed in trying situations. To some extent, you trust yourself to react appropriately regardless of the circumstances. Maybe you sense that you can make things go your way. This partially explains why you draw energy from your current accomplishments. Because of your strengths, you sometimes improve your results or add to your list of accomplishments by consciously using your talents. Perhaps you are more efficient or effective when you practice doing better what you naturally do well. Chances are good that you sense you have an ability to create word pictures that describe the future. You can inspire people with your images of what can be. The individuals who most appreciate your forward thinking probably want and need to hear from you often. Driven by your talents, you frequently notice what makes each person unique or special. Armed with these insights, you probably inspire many individuals to move into action. You realize life is more fulfilling for people who choose tasks and are given assignments that closely match their talents. You often notice the different moods, need for information, or preferred forms of recognition for the people in your life. By nature, you know you spotlight the best ideas people share with you. By giving your full attention to another person, you acknowledge the value of his or her thoughts and feelings. In the process, you usually enhance the individual’s confidence.

Futuristic

Instinctively, you feel wonderful when people value your innovative and original ideas. You are likely to help them envision what can be accomplished in the coming months, years, or decades. By nature, you invest considerable time creating the future of your own choosing. You frequently share your ideas about what will be possible in the coming months, years, and decades. You probably capture people’s attention whenever you describe in vivid detail what you imagine. Because of your strengths, you take advantage of every opportunity to describe to others all the amazing things you see happening in the coming months, years, or decades. Your vision opens people’s minds to new and wondrous possibilities. You challenge them to consider ideas they might not have thought of on their own. Driven by your talents, you regularly pause to envision what you want to accomplish in the coming months, years, or decades. You think in terms of possibilities. This allows you to recover from setbacks, problems, disappointments, or even disasters. People are apt to marvel at your ability to remain upbeat in the face of life’s difficulties and unpredictability. Chances are good that you regularly set aside the majority of your time to contemplate what the world could be like years or decades from today. Ideas come to you when you are in the company of visionary thinkers. These individuals often stimulate your inventiveness.

Strategic

Because of your strengths, you customarily pinpoint the core problems and identify the best solutions. You artfully and skillfully eliminate distractions. This helps people gain a clear understanding of what is happening and why it is happening. You frequently identify ways to transform an obstacle into an opportunity. It’s very likely that you comprehend what has gone wrong. Eagerly, you uncover facts. Sorting through lots of information rarely intimidates you. You welcome the abundance of information. Like a detective, you sort through it and identify key pieces of evidence. Following these leads, you bring the big picture into view. Next, you generate schemes for solving the problem. Finally, you choose the best option after considering prevailing circumstances, available resources, and desired outcomes. By nature, you long to know more so you remain on the cutting edge of your field or areas of interest. Your inventive mind usually generates more possibilities than you can handle or fund. Nonetheless, you are committed to acquiring knowledge and/or skills. You study everything involved in a situation and conceive entirely new ways of seeing or doing things. What you already know prompts you to ask questions and delve even deeper into a subject or problem. Instinctively, you usually feel satisfied with life when your innovative thinking style is appreciated. You automatically pinpoint trends, notice problems, or identify opportunities many people overlook. Armed with this knowledge, you usually devise alternative courses of action. By evaluating the circumstances,
available resources, and/or the potential consequences of each plan, you can select the best option. Driven by your talents, you generate ideas quickly. You draw clever linkages between facts, events, people, problems, or solutions. You present others with numerous options at a pace some find dizzying. Your innovative thinking tends to foster ongoing dialogue between and among the group’s participants.

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Skateboarding and Women

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 06:46:51 -0800

I've been skateboarding for 25 years. It's my first love.

I got my son Steele (7) his first skateboard yesterday and we went for our first session.

Before we started I told him a few things like:

You're going to get hurt. You're going to fall and bleed and cry. But it will be worth it.

...kind of like women

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